Maureen O'Sullivan (Dublin Central, Independent) | Oireachtas source

It is very true to say that in order to understand the present we must look back to the past; that is nowhere more true than in Northern Ireland. We can go back to the Nine Years War and the plantation of Ulster, right to the Ulster volunteers and the Troubles. These are why it is very significant that we have a Good Friday Agreement, as it has meant a whole generation of people in Northern Ireland have not experienced living with violence and bloodshed, as those did who lived through the Troubles.

There is no doubt that Brexit is undermining and threatening the Good Friday Agreement. As a member of the Oireachtas Committee on the Implementation of the Good Friday Agreement, I know we have spent a huge amount of time giving space and listening to individuals, groups and organisations, allowing them to discuss how Brexit is having an impact on them or how they see Brexit having an impact in future. It has gone across a wide range of areas, including economics, agriculture, industry, businesses, health and education, transport, movement, community issues and language etc. We respected the democratic vote of the UK but there is also a need for a reciprocal respect for our vote here on the Good Friday Agreement and all it entails.

I will speak to some particular matters, the first being legacy issues. There is a danger that legacy issues will be relegated in the grand scheme of things in Brexit. I have heard the frustration and despair of families still waiting on information and justice with respect to Troubles-related incidents and crimes. I now chair the Oireachtas group on Justice for the Forgotten after the work of Deputy Crowe. We meet regularly and I know the people in that group have been waiting for so long. Three motions were passed in these Houses relating to the Dublin-Monaghan bombings and if three similar motions had been passed in the House of Commons, they would not react with the same patience we have shown here. There should be a strong stance from the Government in representing the families of those victims of that single and dreadful atrocity. Other families are also waiting for answers. I mention the matter of the hooded men, and how much longer will that affected group have to wait?

I acknowledge that the overwhelming majority of people on the island fully supported the Good Friday Agreement but some did not for various reasons. Rather than labelling and ostracising the group, we should be inclusive and bring them into a shared future vision. I, along with other Members of this House, visit prisoners in Northern Ireland at Maghaberry, both republican and loyalist, and we know that repression breeds resistance. There have been a number of agreements, such as that between prisoners and authorities, and the International Red Cross and independent parties have been in, but they are still not being implemented. There seems to be very little interest from those who can bring about change, apart from our visiting group.

It is difficult to keep up with the British position. For a long time it was not clear and it keeps changing. Just yesterday they announced the UK would withdraw from the Digital Single Market, which means there will be roaming charges for those travelling North. I know it is a minor detail but it is an example of this ever-changing landscape that is Brexit. The Tánaiste knows my concerns about animal welfare, and this is another matter that could be relegated in the talks about Brexit details.

It is very unfortunate the Irish language is being politicised and is being used almost like a political football when it is so clearly defined in the Good Friday Agreement. Language should be a means to bring us together rather than pulling us further apart. When our committee was in Belfast recently, we met Irish language groups, including a unionist group that was delighted to tell us about all its efforts in learning Irish. That must be commended and encouraged.

It is ironic that we will celebrate the 20th anniversary of the Good Friday Agreement in the current atmosphere. Within the sphere of elements that are unclear and constantly changing, I acknowledge the Tánaiste's work, as well as the work of the officials in the Department. It has been extremely difficult for all of them to do this kind of work when we did not know what would happen after the Brexit vote. Even now, things are changing as we speak.

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